The Complex
by Raivis-Latvijas
Summary: After living on a cargo ship for four months, twenty-three year old Novak Novkovic leaves the comfort and relative safety of his father's ship to live in the United States. Thanks to a friend of his father's, Novak already has a place to live; the most culturally, religiously, ethnically diverse apartment complex in the entirety of Oregon. OCs & Canon characters, Yaoi and Het.
1. Arrival

**A/N: **A new story I started while sitting around in my mom's apartment in Portland, Oregon. My laptop (still in Ohio), is broken, and unable to be repaired. While I'm here in Portland I'm going to buy a new laptop to take back to Ohio with me. From there, I'm going to get the data from the hard drive transferred over to the new computer from the old one. Until further notice, I'm going to be working on a batch of new stories, starting with this one.

Without further ado, here's the first chapter of "The Complex".

**Xxxx**

Stepping off the large cargo ship with a sigh, Novak Novkovic slung his black backpack over his shoulder and took in a deep breath of the crisp coastal air. It was late June, and he was in a brand new place. The United States of America.

With dirty jeans, worn out work boots, an old-looking yellow t-shirt, a black jacket, and a black flat cap, he looked pretty close to homeless. Add an unshaven face and messy blonde hair to his choice of clothing, and anyone passing by would automatically assume he hadn't had access to anything hygienic for a long while.

And Novak supposed that was true; he had lived on a cargo ship for the past four months. His father, Nebojsa , was the captain of the ship, and had allowed him to live on the ship while he went around the world shipping different goods and resources.

Nebojsa approached his twenty-three year old son and smiled, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"This is Oregon. I'm going to leave you here to find a life of your own. You can do it, Novak. You have everything, right? Birth certificate, ID, all your money…?"

"Yes, I have everything I need… I just have to find a place to stay." Novak replied.

"Don't worry about it, Novak. I have a young man coming to pick you up." Nebojsa motioned to a cherry red Buick Riviera pulling up. "Speak of the devil, here he is."

The Buick pulled up and a black-haired man with a buzz-cut and a clean shaven face got out of the driver's seat. He pulled a pair of aviator sunglasses off of his face, piercing blue eyes looking back and forth between the two men on the other side of the car.

"Hey Nebojsa; been a while. This your son?" The man's accent signaled that he was from the same region as Novak, though he wasn't Serbian like the two seafarers.

"Yeah, this is Novak." Nebojsa patted his son's back, then motioned to the man who had been driving the Buick. "Novak, meet Nikodemos Antonov. He's Macedonian, and your new landlord. He's covered the first month of you staying in a nice apartment. Once the month's over, paying for rent is on you."

"Sounds fine by me." Novak responded. Nebojsa grinned.

"Well, my son, I guess this is it. Enjoy your new life in the United States of America. Don't worry; if you need anything, just ask Niko here."

Novak nodded and tightly hugged his father. "Thanks, dad. I'll be seeing you."

"You're very welcome, Novak. Be on your way now." As Nebojsa turned and walked back up the ramp onto his cargo ship, Novak turned to Nikodemos.

"Macedonian, huh?" He said as he got into the other man's car. The vehicle was pristine, as if the man cleaned it every day. Nikodemos sat in the driver's seat and nodded.

"Straight out of Struga. You're from Belgrade, right?" He asked, starting to drive towards the city, away from the coast.

"Yeah. So how do you know my father?" Novak asked, looking to the Macedonian.

"My dad works on the docks in New York. Nebojsa spent a few nights in New York a couple years ago and he met my dad. They went out for a few drinks, somewhere along the lines my dad told yours that I work as a landlord out here in Portland… It's a loose connection that your dad somehow remembered. I figured I'd help out; I've got more than a few rooms that need filling." Nikodemos explained.

"You being a landlord explains the nice car." Novak commented.

"Yep. 1963 Buick Riviera. Custom paint, brand new engine, top-of-the-line tires… Let's just say I like American cars. At least the old ones, that is."

"So what's the apartment complex like?"

"It's at the base of a small mountain. Seven different two-story buildings. Three pools, two hot tubs, two fitness centers… Where you'll be staying is the standard one bedroom, one bathroom apartment. There's a kitchen, a small dining room, a bedroom, a bathroom, and a living room. Plenty of closet space, though it seems you won't need it. It's pre-furnished, and I've taken the courtesy of putting in some new electronics for you. TV, DVD player… Oh, and here." The Macedonian man reached into a plastic bag on the floor and pulled out a small cell phone.

"Prepaid cell phone. Figured you wouldn't have one. My number is already in there in case you need to call."

"Thank you very much… You didn't need to do all this for me." Novak said, flipping open the phone, looking it over with moderate curiosity, and then shoving it in his jeans pocket.

"Consider it a favor from one Balkan to another. Believe me, I may seem like a jackass, but I care about people. Some more than others."

Novak chuckled. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I like people who aren't from around here. At the apartment complex, which is called Brickyard Apartments, by the way, consists of mostly people who were born outside of the United States. You could make up the former Yugoslav nations with the nationalities around. Hell, you could make up the entirety of Europe. There are two German brothers, three Italians, a Russian, his Ukrainian and Belorussian siblings… An Armenian, some Nordics, a Spaniard, a Frenchman… I warn you though; there are some shady characters around. But, other than them, everyone's pretty nice. I hope you don't mind a lot of diversity."

"Wow… So there are others who were born in the SFRY?"

"Yeah. There's Branko, a Montenegrin… Really, really nice guy. Muscular. Usually hangs out at one of the pools or fitness centers…. Then there's Pavla, a Slovene woman. Don't mess with her. She's nice and all, but she's not afraid to backhand any man around. There's also Andelko, everyone's favorite bearded Croat. He's a good guy. Let's see here… There's also Zlatko. He's another one of the shady characters. Maybe that's because he's Bosnian, maybe it's just because he never talks. I don't know… Oh, and then there's Tiku. He's from Kosovo. He seems nice enough, but he doesn't hang around the complex much. And then there's me, a Macedonian, and now we have you, our Serb."

"So you take the time to actually memorize your tenant's names, huh?"

"Only the ones I like and communicate with."

"I see…"

As the Macedonian made a turn into a fenced in lot, he smiled. "Welcome to the complex."

The man parked the car in a parking space outside of an office, and got out. Novak got out as well, looking around in the sunset light. The buildings of the complex had off-white walls with small yards around each building. Flowers and shrubbery decorated the landscape. There was a small pool outside of the office, with only two lounge chairs and a table with one chair sitting on the stone ground around the pool.

"I'll show you around the complex, then take you to where you'll be staying. That alright?" Nikodemos questioned, looking to the Serbian man. Novak nodded, and Nikodemos began walking. The Macedonian led Novak down a sidewalk, commenting on the different buildings they passed. They stopped at one of the pools and Nikodemos introduced him to a few of the tenants.

A man with short black hair and a trimmed beard hopped out of the pool and stood with a smile on his face. He had an abundance of hair on his torso and a tattoo of two names on the left side of his ribcage. Water dripped down his slightly muscular body and off of his red and white checkered swim shorts.

"New resident, huh?" The man said. "I'm Andelko Begovich. ER Trauma Nurse." He offered his hand to Novak, which the Serbian shook with a smile.

"Novak Novkovic. Just got to the states today." Novak replied. He put his hands in his pockets, looking around. A slightly tan-skinned man lay asleep on a lounge chair, a health magazine lying on his chest. He had brown hair that looked like it had lighter colored highlights, and was very muscular. Novak took a shot in the dark and guessed that the man sleeping was the Branko that Nikodemos had mentioned earlier.

"If you need anything, feel free to ask. I work days, so I'm gone typically early in the morning until sometime in the afternoon on days I work. Depends on whether the hospital is busy, but on most days I'm back around six in the afternoon. I'm almost always out here swimming when it's nice out." Andelko explained.

"Alright. Thanks." Novak responded.

"No problem. You probably had a stressful trip to the states, huh? Me and a couple other tenants are going to hang out at the hot tub later tonight around ten." Andelko motioned to an in-ground hot tub a few feet away from the pool under a gazebo. "Would you care to join us?"

"Sure. I don't exactly have any swimwear though."

"You can borrow a pair of my swim shorts."

"You think they'll fit?"

"Sure. You don't seem too much bigger than me."

"I have a bit of a gut I need to work off. Living on a cargo ship for four months can take its toll on your body."

"Don't worry about it. You'll get fit quick living here. Trust me; I used to be a bit of a bigger guy myself. Once I moved here for work, I was whipped into shape. Running around the ER, hiking, and swimming… It's a great way to get fit." Andelko chuckled, smiling.

"Alright. Well, I'm going to have Nikodemos take me to my apartment, so I'll see you later tonight… Andelko, right?"

"Yep." Andelko nodded. "See you tonight, Novak."

After Nikodemos showed Novak the rest of the complex, he handed the Serb a key and showed him to his new apartment. The silver number on the front of the door was the number seventeen.

"I'll see you later, Novak. Remember; give me a call if you need anything." With that, Nikodemos left. Novak walked into his apartment, looking around. To his left was a tan couch with a coffee table in front of it. A tan recliner was against the far wall, and a TV was on a stand against a small wall to his right. There was an entryway to a small kitchen. Next to the door he had come in, there was a hall with a few closets and an open door to a bedroom. He walked into the bedroom and set his backpack on the bed, sighing slightly. There was a large dresser with a mirror in between two windows.

Novak took off his hat and set it on the dresser, looking himself in the mirror. He looked so gruff and unclean; he figured taking a shower would make him feel a bit better about himself.

He walked to the bathroom and got undressed, tossing his dirty clothes on the floor. He took a shower, scrubbing his body clean with soap and washing his matted hair with the mall bottle of shampoo that Nikodemos had most likely left for him.

When he got out of the shower, he wrapped a towel around his waist and proceeded to get dressed. As he pulled on his jeans, a knock came upon the door of his apartment. He wrapped the towel he had been using around his neck and walked out of the bathroom, going to the entrance to the apartment and opening the door.

Standing outside was Andelko, carrying a plastic bag.

"Hey Andelko. What's up?" Novak asked, smiling at the man.

"I brought that pair of swim shorts for you. Just asked Niko which apartment you lived in." Andelko held out the plastic bag to the Serbian, who accepted the bag.

"Come on in, if you'd like." Novak said, turning and walking into the apartment. Andelko stepped in, shutting the door behind him.

"I'm assuming you just took a shower?" He asked, looking over the Serb, whose hair was still damp.

"Yeah. So you're from Croatia, right? How long has it been since you lived there?" Novak questioned.

"Twenty years… I'm twenty-nine right now. You can imagine the period of time I left Croatia in."

"You probably left during the start of the Croatian War, if I'm doing my math correctly. Right?"

"Yeah. You said you'd been living on a cargo ship for the past four months when we were talking at the pool, correct?"

Novak nodded. "I decided that I'd had enough of living in Serbia and got on my dad's ship when he stopped into one of the ports in Montenegro. I left pretty much everything I owned with my mother back in Belgrade, but it's not like I had much in the first place. I didn't have a cell phone, computer, or anything that I could really take with me."

"Are your parents married still?"

"Shockingly, yeah. Yours?"

"Well… My father died in Vukovar in 1991. My mom's a widow."

"Oh… I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's alright. The past it the past; that's pretty much the motto in the complex. You'll notice that no one here really clings to events that happened in the past. All the wars in the nineties; they stay in the nineties. A lot of us from the Balkan region grew up for at least a few years in Yugoslavia, and almost every one of us left before all the wars went into full swing."

"Who stayed in their countries during the wars?"

"There's a Bosnian named Zlatko who lives here in the complex. He was born in '86 and stayed in Bosnia until '03. He has some pretty… gruesome stories. I could only listen to a few before I had to ask him to stop."

"That brutal, huh? I can't imagine what he went through. I stayed safe in Belgrade during the nineties. Lived there all my life up until I got on my dad's cargo ship. Now I'm here in Portland, Oregon, with absolutely no knowledge of where anything is."

"I'll help you out. Help you get your bearings on the area. It's really not too bad out here. Very green. Very healthy."

"Thanks. Well, I'll go put on these swim shorts, and I'll be right out." Novak said, smiling at the Croatian, who nodded. The Serb went back into his bedroom, shutting the door behind him. He took off his jeans and underwear, taking the pair of swim shorts out of the plastic bag that Andelko had given him.

The pair of swim shorts was black with a red star on one side. Novak pulled them on and sighed slightly, walking back out of the bedroom. Andelko looked to him.

"They fit alright?" He asked.

"Yeah. Perfectly." Novak replied with a smile.

"Come on then; I'm sure the rest of the guys will be thrilled to meet you. Oh, and as it turns out, my ex-wife and another woman, Pavla, are joining us." Andelko said, opening the door and walking out, followed by Novak.

"Ex-wife? You were married?" Novak questioned.

"Only for a year. Elizibeta and I were married five years ago. It was doomed from the start. Neither of us really loved each other, and the marriage fell through. We're still great friends though. She's Hungarian, by the way." Andelko explained.

"Wow. That's rare to hear that two people who got divorced actually get along."

"I know, right?"

As they two got to the hot tub, Andelko greeted one other man who was sitting in the water already. The man had messy brown hair and dull green eyes that were surrounded by dark circles. He was decently muscular, but had a few visible scars on his pale skin that shocked Novak.

"Novak, meet Zlatko Pilav. The Bosnian I was telling you about earlier." Andelko introduced. As Novak stepped into the hot tub, he offered his hand to shake. Zlatko shook the Serb's hand with a small smile and a quiet greeting that was nearly drowned out by the sound of the jets under the water.

Novak sat down in one of the corners of the square hot tub and leaned back. Andelko sat in the opposite corner, next to Zlatko.

"So I think we've completed our little group of former Yugoslavs, Zlatko. We have our Serb now." Andelko stated, looking to the Bosnian beside him.

"Really? How funny that people from all over Europe keep flocking to this complex." Zlatko replied.

"Well, they do say birds of a feather flock together."

"But Europeans are very diverse. Even in the Balkan region itself; the countries may be small, but each one is so different in many ways."

"I agree."

"Hey, hey, look who showed up!" A woman wearing a green bikini exclaimed. "Zlatko; it's been forever since I last saw you." The cheerful brunette sat on the edge of the hot tub on the side of Zlatko that was vacant and leaned down, hugging the man. She had similar green eyes to Zlatko, and had nearly the same color hair.

"Hey, Pavla."

So the cheerful woman was the Slovenian Pavla that Novak had heard about.

"Just so you know, Novak, these two are cousins." Andelko informed, glancing to Novak. Pavla turned her vision to the blonde Serb relaxing at the other side of the hot tub.

"Oh, who're you, stranger?" She asked, smiling.

"I'm Novak Novkovic. Just moved here from Serbia." Novak answered, smiling at the Slovene woman.

"I'm Pavla Prockofijev. I'm from Slovenia. It's nice to meet you. I have to say though; you don't look one bit like an ethnic Serb. I mean, blonde hair? Is that natural?" Pavla asked, laughing slightly. Novak chuckled.

"I've been told that before. As far as I know, I'm Serbian. Born and raised in Belgrade. Both my parents are Serbian, and my grandparents are Serbian except for one."

"Where are they from?"

"Moldova. Must be where I get my blonde hair from."

"So one of your grandparents being Moldovan makes you… A fourth Moldovan, right? Yeah, I think so... I'm a Biology teacher, and genetics are my favorite part about it. Sorry if I ask any odd questions." Pavla apologized, smiling.

"Let's see here, we have a teacher, an ER nurse, and… Zlatko, where do you work?" Novak asked the quiet Bosnian.

"… I'm a bartender at a restaurant just down the road." Zlatko replied, smiling embarrassedly.

"Bartender? You seem too quiet for such a social job."

"He's more talkative when he's comfortable with his surroundings. He's been working at that restaurant for a few years now." Pavla informed. "He's actually a pretty social guy, believe it or not."

"So where's Liz?" Andelko asked Pavla.

"She's on her way. She had to do a last minute errand so that Roderich had something to eat when he got home."

"Have you heard from Branko or Tiku?"

"Branko decided to go for a jog, so he may be a bit late. Tiku said he had a lot of work to do, but he'd do it later in favor of coming here."

"Alright. Man, I haven't seen Tiku in a long time. He's so focused on college. He's going to have a great career ahead of him once he graduates."

"No kidding."

Time passed quickly, with conversations spurring up out of anything that the four people in the hot tub came up with. When three more people joined, Novak paid more attention, wanting to learn about them.

"Make some room, boys." A woman with slightly curled brown hair said with a playful smile. She had bright green eyes much like Novak's own, and was wearing a red and green bikini. She hopped in and sat down, followed by two men.

One was the muscular man Novak had seen earlier that he assumed was Branko. The other man looked to be the youngest out of everyone in the gathering. He had light brown hair and tired-looking green eyes. His skin was slightly tanned and practically flawless, minus a cast covering his left hand and wrist.

"Looks like we have a new face here. What's your name, blondie?" The woman who had come with the two men asked.

"I'm Novak Novkovic." Novak replied, smiling. "Just got to the states today. I'm from Serbia."

"Novak, eh? I'm Elizibeta Hedervary, but just call me Liz. I'm from Hungary."

"It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise. Hey, boneheads, introduce yourselves to this newcomer." Elizibeta smacked both the heads of the two men she had come in with. The muscular man was the first to speak.

"I'm Branko Njegos from Montenegro. Nice to meet you." He said, grinning. He then pointed to the man he had come in with. "Your turn."

"I'm Tiku Harxhi." The young brunet said, looking to Novak. "I'm from, uh… Kosovo… Hope you're not the kind of Serb to… yeah…" Tiku trailed off.

"Oh, don't worry about it, Tiku. I'm not against Kosovo's independence." Novak chuckled.

"Oh thank God…" Tiku breathed a sigh of relief. "I left Kosovo to escape people who fought against Kosovo's independence. So far, everyone I know here has little to no negative opinion of it. I'm glad to finally meet a Serb who's for Kosovar independence."

"I like to think I'm different than a lot of Serbians. I'm naturally blonde, for one. Not common in Serbia much. I don't give a shit about what happened in the nineties much…. I don't hold grudges unless I have a good reason to hold one."

"The blonde hair strikes me as something that you take pride in." Andelko stated, chuckling.

"That… is way too true." Novak replied, laughing heartily.

The group relaxed in the hot tub for what must have been a half hour. Slowly, one by one, they dissipated. Tiku had left to go work on an essay for a college class he was taking, Branko had gone off to rest for the night, Zlatko had to hit the hay due to the fact he had to work the next day, and Pavla and Liz had decided to go on a late-night walk around town. That just left Andelko and Novak at the pool, late at night with the moon high in the cloudless sky.

Andelko breathed in a lungful of warm air, then let it out slowly. He leaned his head back against the ground for a moment, eyes closed, before opening them and smiling.

"It's a great night… It's rare here in Oregon to have such great weather… Usually rains a lot, and if it's not raining, it's just cloudy and depressing… Maybe this weather will last. Hopefully it's like this for the rest of the summer." He said.

"Yeah… But hey, rain on land is better than rain on a cargo ship. One time a few of our cargo containers came loose in a storm by Alaska… I had to go out into the freezing rain and wind with a bunch of my crew and try to manually save the cargo... We managed to strap it down until the storm died down, but damn did it suck… I was soaked to the bone, and I must have had a temperature of eighty-five by the time I went back inside."

"Wow… So how was it, living on a cargo ship? You've probably been to a lot of places, huh?"

"Living on the ship was alright depending on the weather… In the four months I was on the ship, I hit the majority of the major shipping state on each side of the United States… Seen a bit of Norway… Denmark… France… A lot of places. I've only really been on the docks. Never been much of anywhere else in the countries."

"Before you went on the ship were you studying to do anything or what? You seem like a decently intelligent guy."

"I actually wanted to go into the Serbian Army because my dad is a veteran, but I decided against it in favor of trying to study to become a mechanic… I dropped out of college because I couldn't afford it, and I just… I got tired of Serbia. That's when I got on my dad's boat when he docked in Montenegro… I used what I had learned to become a mechanic to do my best to upkeep the engines on the ship and whatnot… But automobiles and giant ship engines are two completely different things. I pretty much just served as manpower. I didn't get paid for anything I did until my dad decided to shove me off here to America. He gave me five thousand dollars… told me to use it wisely. I think tomorrow I'm going to go out shopping for a new wardrobe, since I really only have one set of clothes. Know any good places to get clothes around here?"

"Yeah. Actually, how about I take you to the Clackamas Town Center? It's pretty much the mall here. Plenty of clothing stores and whatnot. I don't work tomorrow."

"Could you possibly show me around town as well? I really don't know the area and it'd help if I could have someone who has lived here a while show me around."

"Yeah, of course. Sounds like a plan. Anything to help out a guy like you." Andelko said with a smile.

His chocolate brown eyes peered at Novak with an emotion in them that Novak himself couldn't quite catch. Andelko almost seemed to be _flirtatious _with the way he was looking at Novak, but perhaps that was just the Serb jumping to conclusions. Surely Andelko wasn't gay; the man had an ex-wife! What was Novak thinking, even jumping to the conclusion that a man like Andelko was flirting with him.

"You alright, Novak? Your face is red… Maybe you've been in the hot tub a bit too long." Andelko's voice snapped Novak out of his wandering thoughts.

"Y-Yeah, I probably have been in here a bit long. I think I'm going to get out…" Novak stood from his seat and hurried to get out of the hot tub and walk off, away from the man who was filling his mind with assuming thoughts.

In his rush, he forgot the fact that the concrete was slippery from the water dripping from his body. Before he knew it, his feet slipped out from under him and he fell backwards, smacking his head hard on the cold ground.

For Novak, all went black.


	2. Unexpectance

When Novak finally came to, he awoke in an unfamiliar place.

He opened his eyes, looking around with blurred vision. His body ached and his stomach churned; his head ached in more than just the back where he had hit it, and he felt oddly fatigued.

The Serb was lying in a bed with black covers, and he had a cold washcloth on his forehead. He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed, standing. He tossed the washcloth aside on the carpeted floor, looking around the unfamiliar room.

He tried to remember; what exactly had happened at the hot tub? How did he get here? He knew he hadn't gotten drunk and passed out somewhere. He hadn't consumed any alcohol in the previous night… or had he? He couldn't remember.

Novak looked at one of the dressers in the room and noticed a photo sitting next to a lamp. He picked it up and looked to it, automatically breathing a sigh of relief. The picture was of Andelko and a very elderly man.

Novak looked over his shoulder as the bedroom door was opened, seeing Andelko walk in. The Serb set down the picture he was holding and turned around, smiling slightly.

"Oh, you're up. How're you feeling? You hit your head pretty hard, and all night you were running a fever. I brought you here to my apartment since it was closer than yours." Andelko explained, approaching the Serbian.

"I'm feeling okay... Just an ache in the back of my head." Novak lied; to be truthful, he felt like shit. He just didn't want Andelko worrying. "Thanks for taking care of me, Andelko."

"It's no problem. Not to pester you or anything, but do you mind if I take your temperature? I just want to make sure your fever is gone."

"I don't mind. Better safe than sorry."

Andelko chuckled, going to the bathroom and taking a medical thermometer out of a cabinet. He washed off the end with water, then handed it to Novak. "Here you go."

Novak stuck the thermometer in his mouth and held it under his tongue, sitting on the bed. Andelko sat next to him, sighing slightly.

"I'm just going to check the back of your head to see how bad the swelling is. When I looked last night you had quite a knot where you hit the concrete." He explained, leaning back. Novak closed his eyes and relaxed as Andelko felt the back of his head, moving his hair and inspecting the hurt area.

"… Doesn't look too bad; the swelling's gone down… Some ice wouldn't hurt though." Andelko told the other man, patting his back a bit. The thermometer in Novak's mouth beeped and the Serbian removed it from its place, sighing when he read the number. 103.2.

Andelko read the number and raised an eyebrow. "Still have a fever after an entire night... And this is a high temperature... Tell me truthfully, Novak, are you really feeling alright?"

Novak looked down.

"Let me guess. You feel like hell? Lethargic, achy, sick to your stomach? You don't have to hide anything from me, Novak." Andelko placed a hand on the man's shoulder comfortingly.

"… I just don't want anyone to worry about me. I just got here to the states… Being sick is the last thing I need…" Novak muttered.

"I'll help you back to your apartment. Just rest for the day, alright? Its best you recover before you do anything." Andelko stood and offered his hand to the other man. Novak took the Croat's hand, and he was assisted to his feet.

"Thanks… You hardly know me, and yet you're helping me so much." He said, looking to the bearded man.

"Everyone in the complex will help you up when you're down. I guess I just feel more obligated than others. I feel you need some good friends to help you get around here in the states. I'll be the first. Oh, by the way, here's my number, if you need anything." Andelko replied, scribbling down his number on a nearby piece of paper with a pen on the bedside table and handing it to Novak. "Now come on. Let's get you to your apartment."

Novak nodded, and Andelko led the Serb out of his apartment. When they arrived, Novak walked into his apartment with a sigh. "Thanks again, Andelko. I'll talk to you later."

"No problem, Novak. Talk to you later." Andelko said with a smile, before leaving. Novak, too unwell to do much more than lay around, had quite a bit of time to do absolutely nothing until he felt better.

Around midnight, the blonde-haired man was up and about, feeling much better after a long nap. He still had an ache in the back of his head from hitting it on the concrete, but it was nothing he couldn't handle.

Feeling restless, with enough energy to last him quite a while, Novak decided to have a quick swim in one of the complex's pools. He still had Andelko's swim shorts that he had given him.

After getting the swim shorts on, he walked out of his apartment with a towel and headed towards the closest of the three fenced-in swimming pools. Once he got to it, he set his towel on a chair and sighed. He was slightly startled when he heard some splashing come from the pool; he didn't see anyone in the pool when he had glanced at it before.

He looked to the water and saw Tiku with his arms up on the edge of the concrete ground.

"Heard you took quite the fall yesterday. You alright?" The Kosovar man asked.

"Yeah. I'm alright; just a lump on the back of my head now." Novak replied, chuckling. "Care if I join you for a swim? I've got so much energy, I don't know what to do with it."

Tiku laughed a bit. "I don't mind at all. I know exactly why you're here. I have to take the TriMet to downtown Portland for class at 6 in the morning, but I have too much energy to sleep tonight. I have a big test to take, too."

"You know, I never did learn what you're studying." Novak commented as he got in the pool.

"Oh, I'm studying Music Theory." Tiku said, smiling a bit. "The study of how music works; rhythm, harmonic function, melody, structure, form, texture, etcetera…"

"So if you're studying music, I'm guessing you play at least one instrument."

"Four, actually. I'm a jack of all trades." Tiku chuckled. "Electric guitar, bass guitar, drums, and violin."

"Violin? All the rock-oriented instruments, then violin? How did that come to be?" Novak asked.

"My mother was a violinist. When I was a kid, I used to always sit and watch her play. One day she handed me the violin she had, and told me to play. I sucked at first, but by the age of ten, I was really good. I mean, looking back at home videos, I never would have guessed someone as young as I was would be able to play so well."

"How about the other instruments? They're way different from the violin."

"Well, first came the electric guitar. My dad didn't want me turning into "a gay pansy", so he bought me an electric guitar and made me stop playing violin, much to the chagrin of my mother. I started off hardly having the motivation to pick up the guitar, which pissed my father off to no end. He threatened to hit me if I didn't play, and, well, when I didn't play, I got the shit beat out of me. It wasn't fun. I played to the best of my ability out of fear that I would get beat again. I played until my fingers bled. It wasn't pretty, but as a teenager, I fell in love with hard rock and metal music." Tiku explained, laughing slightly.

"My father was satisfied, but, since I was playing well, he had no one to take his anger out on. So, when he got pissed, he went out and beat the shit out of some innocent Serbs in northern Kosovo. Now he's in jail for twenty years. Feeling freed from my father wanting me to play electric guitar, I decided to play a different instrument. When my mother and I came here, I went for the bass guitar, and learned that while I went through high school. I picked up drumming towards the end of high school, and pretty much right when I graduated I got an offer to be in a band. Now, two years later, I'm still in the same band, and I'm studying to have a degree in Music Theory. Though the band just does an occasional gig here and there, it's still great to make music."

"I bet it is. Who's in this band of yours?"

"Just a couple of friends. Alfred Jones, Alexianos Kirzigian, Matthew Williams, and Lovino Vargas."

"Who does what?"

"Alfred is our Portland-born vocalist. Mainly clean vocals, but the occasional scream or growl. Alexianos, an Armenian guy, does rhythm guitar. He's a fucking beast at anything you tell him to do. He comes up with a lot of the music to surround Alfred's lyrics. Then Matthew, Alfred's Canadian half-brother, is the bassist; it suits him well. No one ever notices him, but we try to get the bass guitar to actually be heard in the music we've recorded. And then Lovino is our drummer. He has some anger issues, and his way of coping is to play drums. Man, I tell you, that Italian can work a foot-pedal like no other."

"And what do you do?"

"Back-up vocals and lead guitar."

"So you play electric guitar in this band, despite the fact that your father forced you to play it when you were younger?"

"That was a long time ago. I'm 20 years old now. I think just because someone forced you to do something until you got good at it isn't a reason to stop."

"That's an interesting opinion. So what's this band of yours called?"

"The Wings of Icarus. We play some pretty heavy stuff, but a lot of the times we'll play things a bit softer. Our range of talent is pretty wide. Hell, Alexianos can play redneck country music on a seven-string guitar."

"Wings of Icarus, eh? What's the inspiration behind that?"

"It's actually a pretty stupid reason; Alfred was playing some video game in his apartment that had something to do with the myth of Icarus. He had really shiny wings, which I pointed out, and we joked around about them for a while… and eventually, Lovino cut in and said if we loved Icarus' wings so much, why don't we just call the band that, and Al, Matt, Alex, and I just looked to each other and all said The Wings of Icarus at the same time. We did end up calling the band that, and it just kind of stuck. Lovino even warmed up to it." Tiku said, laughing. He went silent for a moment, and looked around.

"What're you-" Novak tried to ask the Kosovar what he was doing, but Tiku smacked a hand over his mouth.

"Listen. You can hear Lovino drumming." Tiku stated quietly, taking his hand off of Novak's mouth.

Novak listened for a few moments, and sure enough, he could hear the distant sound of cymbals and drums clanging and banging in a complicated beat.

"Wow…" He muttered. "That sounds tough…"

"He's playing off the top of his head. Random beats. His twin brother must have pissed him off." Tiku replied.

"How do you know that?"

"He always does that when Feliciano's done something to piss him off. Instead of beating the life out of his brother, Lovino beats the life out of his drums. I can't tell you how amazing it is to just to sit in the same room with him when he's drumming off the top of his head like this. It's so intense. He starts off incredibly strong with beats you'd probably only see in heavy metal music and speedcore and such things like that… The calmer he gets, the simpler his drumming gets. He'll either exhaust himself and have to stop, or he'll just mellow out and stop playing."

"How do you get him to play at gigs? It sounds like he only plays when he's pissed off."

"It takes some motivation to get him to play, but usually he comes to the gigs pissed off enough to play five gigs on a row. I think his brother does it on purpose just to motivate the poor guy."

"So what're your other band members like?"

"Well, Alfred's the only guy in the band who's American. He's a great guy; a bit out there, but great none the less. We were filming a music video for our song "Have a Heart", and he decided that instead of filming us, we would film on the streets, doing good deeds. We nonchalantly handed homeless people cash despite the fact that we don't have much ourselves, Alfred bought a stuffed animal and gave it to a random little girl walking around with her mom, Alexianos helped an elderly man get to the right TriMet station and waited with him for the train, Matthew gave a young teen playing an old decrepit bass guitar on the street a brand new bass guitar, Lovino re-painted the walls of a local business that had illegal graffiti all over it, and I pushed a woman's broken-down car six blocks to a repair place. It took us three months to do all these things, because we wanted them to be legit. We wanted to actually benefit people. And we filmed the entire video on handheld cameras."

"Wow, that's awesome that you guys did that. Anyways, back to my original question; Alfred's a genuinely nice guy who just wants to help people. What about Alexianos, Lovino, and Matt?"

"Alexianos is a quirky guy. Works at a flower shop. Loves to barbeque for some odd reason. He's probably the most fawned-over guy in the band, purely because of looks. Sadly, he's gay, so the women don't even have a shot. I guess that just goes to show, the best looking guys are always either gay or taken." Tiku said, laughing. "And then Lovino; you know about his anger issues, but he's a good guy deep down. Past that rough, angry exterior is an intelligent, ambitious Italian who studies to save lives. He's studying to be a neurosurgeon. He's also the most well-to-do out of the band; his dad's some prominent politician back in Italy and is paying for a lot of his education."

"And Matthew?"

"Matt's real quiet, kind of shy, but is very, very proud. He loves being a French Canadian, that's for sure. Any chance he gets, he goes to Quebec to visit his mom and step-dad. He's the older brother between him and Alfred. Matt's mom had him with a guy in Quebec City, Quebec… Then Matt's dad died suddenly, and about a year later, his mom was with another guy and pregnant with Alfred. So… They're about two years apart, Al and Matt. But they're so, so different. Matt's calm and reserved and quiet while Al is excitable, sometimes obnoxious, and loud."

"I see… Such diversity in the band. Do they all live around here?"

"Yeah. They all live in the apartment complex."

"You're kidding."

"Nope."

"That's awesome."

"Yeah, it is."

The two hung out at the pool in for a while, before they decided to both head to Tiku's apartment. Walking into the small apartment, Novak was hit with the very strong scents of multiple candles. Looking around, he noticed there were quite a few candles sitting around, many of them lit.

"A bit of a candle fanatic?" Novak asked, chuckling.

"Don't judge; I like the place to smell amazing. You have any clue how soothing it is after a rough day of classes to walk into a place that smells like heaven?" Tiku retorted, smirking.

"No, I don't, as a matter of fact." Novak replied, laughing. "You have a nice place though. It's smaller than the other apartments I've been in, but you've decorated it nicely."

"And this is just the living room. Come to my bedroom and I'll show you all my music equipment." Tiku said, walking down a short hall to his bedroom. Novak followed and walked into the room, going wide-eyed when he saw the bedroom practically drowning in music-related objects. At least five electric guitars and three bass guitars sat on stands against one white wall, a drum set sat in one corner, and a single violin lay in a glass case hanging on the wall. Instead of just clothes being in the Kosovar student's decently-sized closet, there were amplifiers taking up the floor space, with the clothes hanging from jury-rigged racks hanging from the ceiling.

"How in all Hell have you managed to buy all these things?" Novak asked, dumbfounded.

"I work at Oxenstierna Jewelry in the Clackamas Town Center, and the owner pays me pretty decently. I set aside money for college, set aside money for bills, set aside money for food and whatnot, and then whatever's leftover I use to my own liking. Oh, and add the band's gigs to that. You'd be surprised how much money you can get for a night of doing what you love."

"I see…"

"Would you like to hear some of the band's music? I've got a CD right here." Tiku picked up a CD case off of a dresser and held it up.

"Sure." Novak replied. Tiku walked out of the bedroom and went to a stereo system in the living room, putting the CD in. Novak sat on the couch and listened. Tiku sat next to him and listened as well.

The music began to play, starting off with a slow distorted guitar rhythm that progressed into a heavier tone when the drums came in.

"_When all I want is to take this away,_

_I give it all to you,_

_Precious, I give it all to you,_

_When all I want is to keep this at bay,_

_I leave it all to you,_

_Love, I leave it all to you!" _Alfred's voice was definitely something else, Novak thought. It wasn't deep, and it wasn't high, but the tone was definitely unique.

"_Blinded by insight,_

_We pass the things we care about the most,_

_Blinded by our broken insight,_

_Take my heart,_

_Have my heart!"_

"_Have a heart,_

_Have a heart to do what you please with,_

_Show we care,_

_Show we know what you're going through!_

_Take it easy at this part,_

_Have… a… __**heart!**__" _A strong scream complimented by heavy guitar riffs made Novak raise his eyebrows in surprise. For such a beautiful male voice to be so powerful at the same time was mind-blowing.

"That's one of the rare screams you get out of Alfred." Tiku commented.

"It's remarkable that he can do that." Novak replied.

"We lucked out when we found Al."

The two sat, listening to the music for a while. Novak was thoroughly impressed with the Kosovar man's band.

"You know, you've learned a lot about me today, Novak. Why don't you tell me a bit about yourself? It's only fair."

"Well, I was born in Serbia, as you already know. Lived in Belgrade all my life. My father's a war veteran, and I wanted to go into the Army because of that, but I decided against it because I wanted to study to become a mechanic. I gave up on that though, because I couldn't afford it, and I just got tired of Serbia. That's when I went to one of the ports in Montenegro and hopped on my dad's cargo ship. Rode around all over the world on that ship for four months before I came here."

"Maybe while you're here in the states you can study to complete your education in mechanics."

"Maybe, but that'll have to be in the future. I have next to nothing in my possession right now, and I have a very limited amount of money."

"I can ask my boss if he'll hire you."

"It'd help if you could put a word in for me somewhere. Anything helps, you know? I'd rather not have to get kicked out of this complex when I don't have any money to pay bills."

"Yeah. Say, Novak, I'm sorry if this is kind of a personal question, but are you gay?"

"Well… Yeah."

"You sounded kind of hesitant there."

"I'm not keen on telling people I'm gay. My dad is extremely anti-gay. If he knew about me being gay, he would murder me."

"I see…"

"Why do you ask?"

"Well…"

"Well…?"

"I mean, you're just…" Tiku sighed. "Nevermind."

"No, no. Tell me what's on your mind, Tiku. I won't hate you or anything no matter what you have to say."

"Would you… maybe… want to go out on a date with me? I just… We're both gay, we're both single, we get along… And I have to say, you're pretty attractive…"

Novak was silent with shock for a few moments, staring at the blushing Kosovar student.

"You and… Me? Of all people, you want to go on a date with me?"

"I know it's odd, since I'm a Kosovar Albanian, and you're a full-fledged Serbian, but… Can you give it a try? I mean, even if things don't work out, we can still be friends, right?"

Novak though for a moment, then nodded. "Sure… I'll go out with you…" He said with a smile.

"Thanks…" Tiku replied, grinning. "Thanks a lot, Novak."

"No problem… So, when would you like to go out?"

"Well, I've got class tomorrow… I won't be home until around noon, and I'll probably need to sleep for a few hours… So, say around five? I'll meet up with you at your apartment."

"Alright. That gives me time to do what I need to do tomorrow. My apartment is number 17."

"Alright."

"I best be getting going, so, I'll see you tomorrow, Tiku." Novak said, standing and heading to the door.

"Alright. I'll see you tomorrow, Novak." Tiku replied. Novak waved a goodbye then exited the apartment, heading to his own with a strong drowsiness hitting him like a ton of bricks. He got to his apartment and went to his bedroom, lying down and closing his eyes for a moment.

He forced them open when he remembered something he needed to do; call Andelko to see if the man could still take him to the Clackamas Town Center to shop for clothes.

He reached for his cell phone, which was sitting on the bedside table, and grabbed the piece of paper with Andelko's number scribbled down on it. He entered the number into his phone, saving it in his contacts before calling. To Novak's surprise, the Croat answered.

"_Hello…?" _A tired-sounding Andelko muttered.

"Hey Andelko, it's Novak."

"_Oh, hey. Odd time to call; what's up?"_ Andelko's voice became more chipper when he heard that it was Novak on the phone.

"I was wondering if you could still take me to the Clackamas Town Center. Tomorrow, er… Later today, actually." Novak chuckled.

"_Yeah, of course. What time do you want to head out?"_

"Would noon be alright? That way we can get what we need to get, and get back here before five in the afternoon."

"_Can I ask why you need to be back before five?"_

"I've got a date."

"… _A date? With who…?"_

"Tiku… He kind of asked me out earlier tonight."

"_Oh…" _Was that disappointment Novak heard in the Croatian's tone? _"Well, I'll watch the clock then, and be sure to have you back before five, then."_

"Thanks, Andelko. I'll talk to you later."

"_No problem… I'll talk to you later."_

Novak hung up the phone and sighed, a bit puzzled. Why had Andelko sounded disappointed over the phone when Novak had told him that he had a date with Tiku?

Novak pondered that question for a few minutes, before deciding to go to sleep, closing his eyes and drifting off into peaceful slumber.


	3. Smile

Around noon of the next day, Novak was sitting in the passenger's seat of Andelko's red Chevy Camaro, conversing with the other man whilst the Croat drove them to the Clackamas Town Center.

"So what kind of fashion do you like? I've only ever seen you in the clothes you're wearing right now, which look like something you pulled from your dad's clothes on the ship, no offense." Andelko said, chuckling.

"You're way too accurate. These actually are my dad's clothes." Novak laughed. "But I like things that aren't flashy, but still look nice, you know? Simple button-up shirts, jeans or slacks… Things like that."

"Kind of like me. Though I myself fancy cardigans. Maybe it's because I'm bisexual, more leaning towards gay, maybe it's because I just look damn good in them." Andelko joked, laughing. Novak grinned, laughing as well.

"So it seems that there's a decent gay, or at least bisexual community around here." Novak said.

"Yeah, it's pretty common around here for people to openly show their sexualities, especially in the complex. To name a few gays in the complex, there's Branko, Niko, Tiku, Zlatko, Alexianos, Berwald, Tino, Alexander…"

"Those are a few names I haven't heard. Berwald, Tino, and Alexander; who are they?"

"Berwald is a jewelry salesman and the owner of a shop in the Clackamas Town Center. He's thirty-two, I think. Big, tall, intimidating Swedish guy. He's way over six feet tall. Must be at least six-foot six. And then there's his ex-husband Tino. Short guy, around five-five, five-six. He's in his late twenties, if I remember correctly. He used to work at the jewelry shop, but now he owns a gun store. He's an expert sharpshooter; has a lot of sniping accolades. And then Alexander is a bit of a shady character. Early thirties. Used to work at a gay strip club in downtown Portland, from what I know. His husband Mathias got him out of that kind of lifestyle and now he's a fashion designer."

"Who's Mathias?"

"Mathias is one of the bisexual guys around. When his first marriage to a woman failed, he found Alexander. Mat is really well-to-do; he's a doctor… Diagnostician, I believe. I think he has more credentials than just that though, because I remember Alexander telling me that Mathias had to perform a surgery a few weeks ago, which was why he wasn't around the complex that day."

"I see. So there have been quite a few failed marriages in the complex too. Yours with Liz, Berwald and Tino's, and then Mathias and his ex-wife's."

"Yeah… Kind of funny though; I'm the only one who's still alone. Tino is dating Alexianos nowadays, Liz is married to a guy named Roderich, Berwald has been dating a young Latvian guy for some time now, Mathias married Alexander… I'm still stuck with no one."

"You'll find the right person sometime, I'm sure."

"Maybe I should have just stuck with Liz." Andelko said, chuckling.

He pulled into the parking lot of the Clackamas Town Center and found a parking space, turning off his car and stepping out. Novak followed the bearded man into the main entrance of the building.

"Welcome to the Clackamas Town Center." Andelko stated with a smile.

"This is huge." Novak muttered, glancing around.

"Yeah, I suppose so. Well, let's get rolling. You need clothes, and I'm guessing you need better shoes than what you're wearing at the moment."

Novak chuckled, glancing down at his worn-out work boots. The soles were just about worn through, and were separating from the shoe itself. The tan color of the footwear had been stained other colors from oil and grease on the boat Novak had come off of. He nodded his head.

"I'd say these things are near-death. As with the rest of what I'm wearing." He said. It was true; his yellow t-shirt had a few holes in it and it was stained as well by usage on a boat. His jeans had huge holes in the knees and the ends of the pant legs were frayed. "Makes me feel like I've been deprived of hygiene every time I wear these clothes."

"Well, you were for the four months you were on the boat, weren't you?" Andelko asked.

"Sort of. We had one working shower on the ship that the entire crew had to use, but a limited clean water supply, so a lot of us went without. I usually went a week without a shower."

"Damn. It must have been hard to brush your teeth or anything on that boat."

"Yeah. Maybe every three days I had a chance to brush my teeth and comb my hair."

"What would you do when your hair gets too long?"

"Get another crew member to cut it with a pair of scissors, or shave it all off so you wouldn't have to bother with it for a while. I had another crew member trim my hair about a month after I got on the boat, and I'll tell you, I was deathly afraid I was going to lose an ear. Thankfully he did a decent job and it didn't look like I cut my hair with a butter knife." Novak laughed a bit, running a hair through his messy blonde hair.

"God, I don't think I could have dealt with living on an unsanitary boat like that for four months. Are you glad to be on land?"

"Eh… It depends. I like being able to meet new people and actually settle down somewhere, but I'll miss the guys on the boat, and I'll miss my dad. And I'll miss the sense of freedom I had being out on the open waters."

"I can understand that. But often times, change is for the better. I don't think living on that boat any longer would have benefitted you."

"That is very true. I was pretty much just wasting my life away working on the same broken parts of an old cargo ship. But I don't regret it. It got me out of Serbia."

The two men conversed and shopped around the mall, Novak spending around one-hundred seventy-five dollars, the most expensive items being a seventy-dollar pair of new work boots.

"You really like work boots, don't you?" Andelko asked as the Serbian tossed his bags of clothing and the shoebox with his new boots in the back of the Camaro.

"Well, I know for one, when I do get a job, it's not going to be an easy job. I like to have to break a sweat when I work." Novak replied, getting in the passenger seat and sighing.

"Maybe you could find a construction job. That's hard work. Believe it or not, but I worked construction for two years." Andelko said as he got in the driver's seat.

"Really? Nurse Begovich worked construction?" Novak teased, prodding the Croat's shoulder with an extended finger.

"Hey now, I'm a doctor. I was a teenager when I worked construction. I graduated high school when I was seventeen, because I was an incredibly accelerated student. Advanced classes and whatnot; I already had half of my nursing school education done by the time I graduated. Then, once I graduated high school, I went ahead and finished nursing school. From there, I was able to get my doctorate in Nursing Practice. So, I'm Doctor Begovich."

"Shouldn't you be running an ER instead of working in one? You could be making so much more money with your kind of education."

"I choose to work in the ER because I like to save lives. It's a pride thing, I guess. I want to save people, not just order others to. And I don't want to transition into something as boring as diagnostics. I couldn't sit there and listen to someone tell me their problems and try to narrow things down to possible diseases or whatever."

"I'm guessing you like the unexpectedness of the ER then, huh?"

"Yeah, exactly. I like not knowing what's coming my way. When we get word that an ambulance is on its way with a victim of polytruama being carried in it, I want to be the first one to get their vitals stabilized and get them on the road to recovery. Call me crazy if you want; I'm ambitious. I want to help people."

"You're not crazy at all. I think that's awesome that you want to save lives so much. People who work in the ER don't get enough credit for what they do. Saving lives, I can only imagine, is a tough and stressful job."

"It really is. I wish I didn't have to deal with the stress alone, but seeing as I don't have anyone around anymore to tell me that I make them proud and that I'm doing the right thing anymore, it gets tough. Sometimes what I see in the ER comes back to haunt me. I've seen children die of terrible wounds that I couldn't do anything for. I've seen innocent people mangled by drunk drivers… It hits the worst when I'm trying to sleep. I try to push it out of my mind, but it's impossible when I have nothing there to distract me."

"I can understand that."

"Taking someone's life in your hands and losing it… It takes so much of an emotional toll, I'm shocked that ER Nurses don't lose their minds after a while."

"You seem pretty sane to me."

"But I didn't get out of college until two years ago when I got my D.N.P…. I'll be working in an ER for the rest of my life, or at least until I'm deemed unfit to work anymore. Two years in an ER is enough to scar someone for life… What will happen when I hit five, ten, fifteen, twenty years? How sane will I be then?"

"We'll find out when those days come around. You have to think in the now; isn't that was doctors and nurses in the ER do all day? They take things moment by moment as they come?"

"I suppose… Sorry for going on this huge rant, Novak. I don't mean to bug you with my issues."

"It's not a problem. I'm used to conversations on the boat where it's just like 'Hey', 'hi', 'got work to do, so bye'."

"That was a good rhyme, Novak." Andelko chuckled, glancing over to the Serbian as he stopped at a red light about a block from the Brickyard Apartments.

"I guess it was." Novak responded, laughing slightly.

"So… you've got a date with Tiku in an hour, huh?" Andelko said, switching the topic of the conversation.

"Yeah. He's a nice guy. Sure, I have better likes in older men, but I figured I'd give him a chance. I mean, he's good-looking, he's energetic, he's talented… He may not be the most intelligent guy around, but he's not an idiot either."

"Excuse me for how I refer to him, but I hope the kid treats you well. He's the youngest person around the apartments, minus one of Tino's sharpshooting friend's little sister. Tiku has a lot going for him though. I hope things go well for you and him. Maybe it'll turn out for the better."

"Yeah, maybe it will." Novak said, smiling despite the fact that he felt Andelko was a bit falsehearted with his words. He could remember the Croat sounding practically disappointed when Novak had informed him that he had a date with Tiku.

When Andelko parked in front of Novak's apartment, he assisted the man in getting his bags inside without hesitation. As Novak began to put his clothes away in the dresser against one of the walls in his bedroom, he looked to Andelko, who was standing in the doorway.

"Thanks for helping me out, Andelko. Means a lot that you would help me even when you've only known me for such a short time."

Andelko smiled. "It's not a problem. I'm going to head to my apartment, so I'll talk to you later. Have a good time with Tiku tonight."

"I will. See you later, Andy."

Andelko seemed to flinch slightly at the use of the nickname, and Novak raised an eyebrow.

"Did I say something wrong?" He asked. Andelko chuckled a bit, face reddening slightly.

"The last person to call me Andy was Liz when I was still married to her. It's kind of an affectionate nickname."

Novak blushed embarrassedly. "Oh, I'm sorry then. I didn't know."

"It's fine. Uh, anyways, I'll see you later, Novak."

"Yeah, see you."

Andelko walked out, leaving Novak to put his things away and get ready for his date with Tiku.

After about twenty minutes of putting his new clothes away in drawers, the Serbian man sighed and looked to the digital clock on the bedside table. He had about a half hour until Tiku was supposed to arrive.

He got himself dressed in a pair of jeans, a white tank top, and a red polo shirt. He combed his hair, though the messy curls in his blonde locks never straightened out. He sighed and looked himself in the eyes, noting the dark circles around his emerald green orbs. Four months on a cargo ship took its toll on your hours of sleep; when Novak had a chance to rest, he only was in slumber for about an hour or even less than that before another mechanical issue struck on the ship and he had to attempt to fix it.

He glanced at the clock once again; fifteen minutes to spare. He went to the bathroom and brushed his teeth, which shockingly, weren't all that bad-looking. A tiny bit yellowed from lack of care on the ship, but it was nothing keeping up with dental hygiene wouldn't fix. With a sigh of minty breath, Novak went out into the living room, deciding to relax before Tiku showed up.

The Serbian sat on the couch, quietly thinking to himself for a few minutes before a knock on the door came. He stood and went to the door, smiling and opening it to reveal, as expected, Tiku.

"Hey Novak." The Kosovar man stated, grinning. "You ready?"

"Yeah." Novak replied. "Let me just grab my keys and I'll be right out." The Serb walked into the kitchen where his apartment keys were, and he shoved them in his pocket. The then grabbed his wallet and put it in his back pocket, returning to the door. "Let's go."

Both men smiling, they headed out the door.

"Hope you don't mind walking to the Clackamas Town Center's TriMet Station. I don't have a car." Tiku explained.

"It's fine; I need a good walk anyways. Have to get myself in shape." Novak responded, chuckling slightly.

"Oregon will whip you right into shape, I'm sure."

"So I've been told."

"Let me guess; Andelko? I noticed you two seem to get along pretty well."

"Yeah. He's pretty much the first person to really open up to me other than you."

"What about Niko? He brought you here, correct?"

"Yeah, but he's… he doesn't seem like much of a people-person, you know?"

"He's a nicer guy than he acts like. Why do you think everyone in this complex has absolutely nothing to complain about apartment-wise? He takes care of us tenants; hell, he even does a lot of the maintenance himself if something breaks. Not that he's a good mechanic or anything, but he tries, you know?"

"Yeah."

"Speaking of mechanics, maybe you can ask him if you can replace him as the mechanic for the complex's machines and whatnot."

"I don't know. I'm pretty handy, but to take care of the maintenance of this entire complex would be bit much."

"And trying to fix a cargo ship's engine wasn't?"

"Touché, Tiku. Touché."

"But really, even if it's only for a little while when you're searching for a better job or getting a better education or whatever, it'd be good for you to have an income."

"I suppose so. I guess I'll ask him about it later… So, where are we headed?"

"It's a restaurant called London Grill. It's a bit on the pricey side, but hey, I've got money to spare. My paycheck was better than I expected."

"Really? That's good."

"Yeah. I'll have to thank my boss when I go into work tomorrow."

"By the way, how was your test today?"

"It was difficult, but I think I did alright. I feel like I wrote a bit too much about polyrhythms on one of the essay questions, but I'm thinking it'll be alright."

"Polyrhythm…?" Novak asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

"Oh; it's a music compositional technique in which more than one contrasting rhythm is used simultaneously with others."

"And all of that just went in one ear and right out the other, but that's okay. You can't honestly expect me to understand what a Music Theory student says when he talks all musical." Novak said, laughing. Tiku smirked and put his hands in his pockets, sighing.

"It's a beautiful day out. Wish I wouldn't have had class all day. It's rare here in Oregon to have a stretch of nice weather like what we've been having for the past few days… Probably going to have a big storm here soon, then it'll go back to typical old Oregon with gloomy overcast weather. Though, you never know… I'm hoping this weather will last."

"Yeah."

"So what did you do while I was in class? I can see you have some new clothes."

"I went out shopping. Andelko helped me out. I paid for everything with my own money, but he helped me make decisions on what to get." Novak chuckled. "I don't really know what I look good in, so I always go shopping with someone else so I can get their opinion."

"I think you look great. I have a feeling you're never going to get rid of those work boots though, huh?" Tiku said, laughing.

"I'm kind of attached to them, I guess. I've worn nothing but work boots since I left Serbia. No other footwear really feels right."

The two chatted all the way to the TriMet station, and after purchasing tickets, they boarded the light rail system that was headed for Downtown Portland.

"Pretty much exactly like the railways in Belgrade." Novak stated as he grabbed a hold of one of the poles in the center of the car's isle. Tiku stood next to him, grabbing a hold of it as well. A lot of the seats were taken, and as they went along, more people would probably board. It was best to stand now before there was nothing to hang on to.

"I bet. Did you ride them a lot when you were in Belgrade?" Tiku asked.

"When I was still in school, I took the railways to school and back home. Haven't ridden one in a while though. About four or five months. I had my mom drive me to the coast of Montenegro to meet up with my dad on his ship when I decided to leave Serbia. It's been at least four months, I know that."

"You ever go outside of Serbia much before you left to get on the cargo ship?"

"A few times I went to Montenegro to see my dad while he was docked there. I've been to Romania once for vacation, and then I've been to Turkey once, also for vacation. All when I was a teenager. Once I got out of school, I never really left Belgrade."

"That's understandable. Who knows; maybe you'll get sick of the United States and actually want to go back to Serbia for a while."

"Maybe just for a visit, but to live there again? Nah. Say, where are you from in Kosovo? Pristina?"

"Nah. Dardana."

"I have never heard of it."

Tiku chuckled. "You may know it by the more… Serbian name it's also called; Kosovska Kamenica?"

"Oh, yeah… I have to keep in mind most cities in Kosovo have two names; an Albanian one and a Serb one."

"Don't worry about it. I'll try to use the Serbian names around you."

"I'm sorry to interrupt," A man with short brown hair apologized from his seat, looking up to the two men conversing. "But you two are from the Balkans, right?" His accent gave away that he was from a Slavic region of Europe.

"Yeah. I'm a Kosovar Albanian, and he's a Serb." Tiku said, turning to the man.

"Man, am I glad to find some other Southeastern Europeans here. I'm from Bulgaria." The man in the seat chuckled.

"Oh, cool. I haven't met a Bulgarian around here yet." Tiku replied. "I'm Tiku Harxhi." The Kosovar man offered his hand to the Bulgarian.

"Apostle Svetozar." Apostle shook hands with Tiku, then offered his hand to Novak. "Your name, sir?"

"Novak Novkovic." Novak responded, shaking the other's hand firmly, smiling.

"Novak Novkovic? That's a catchy name." Apostle chuckled. "How long have you two been here in the states?"

"I've been here a while. Since I was thirteen. I'm twenty now." Tiku explained.

"I see. What about you, Novak?"

"I actually came here a few days ago. I'm still new to the area and everything."

"Really? I have a feeling you'll like America. You don't seem like the typical Serbian. I don't quite believe I've ever seen a blonde-haired, green-eyed Serb hanging out with a Kosovar Albanian. You sure you're Serbian?" Apostle joked.

"I'm actually a fourth Moldovan. That's how I believe I received such traits that I have."

"Moldovan? That's odd, to say the least. Your story just gets more and more distant from your typical Serbian."

"I know, right?" Novak laughed. "So where are you headed?"

"Work. Part-time bartender."

"Why part-time? You a student?" Tiku asked.

"In a way you could call me a student. I'm an athlete training for the Olympics. Hoping to compete in 2016."

"Really? That's awesome. What sport do you participate in?"

"I'm a gymnast. Floor exercise, pommel horse, high bar, etcetera, etcetera… I do them all."

"You don't seem very short. A lot of gymnasts I've seen watching the Olympics are always tiny."

"I'm five feet ten inches tall. I'm one of the tallest gymnasts around… but I'm underestimated by a lot of people. I'm hoping to get Bulgaria on the map with gymnastics. Next week I'm heading to Sofia for a tournament with a group of other Bulgarian gymnasts… All three of us are hoping to compete in 2016."

"That's awesome that you have that kind of ambition. I'll have to watch your guys' progress."

"It's a longshot, but I've got my mind set to it."

As the TriMet came to a stop, Tiku sighed. "Well, here's Novak and I's stop. Apostle Svetozar, you said your name was?"

"Yeah. It was nice meeting you two."

"Likewise. I'll look you up online sometime. See you around."

Novak and Tiku stepped off the light rail car and the latter of the two led the other down the sidewalk. They proceeded to the restaurant and ate dinner together, chatting casually, eating the rather delicious food that they ordered, and leaving satisfied.

As they got back on the light rail system to head home, the two Southeastern Europeans sat next to each other. Tiku yawned.

"Man, I'm tired. Been a long day." He muttered.

"I bet. I have to say though, thanks for taking me out tonight, Tiku. You're a great guy. I feel like I should be paying you or something; that dinner was expensive, especially for a college student." Novak replied.

"Don't worry about it, Novak. You've paid for it in kindness and good looks."

"I'm not that good-looking."

"Oh, but you are. You just don't realize it."

"You could probably find at least twenty men more handsome than me on this tram."

"I doubt it." Tiku stated, grinning at the other man. Novak couldn't help but smile.

"Whatever you say, Tiku." He responded, chuckling.

After the ride back to the Clackamas Town Center and the walk back to the apartments, the two stood outside of Novak's apartment.

"Thanks for taking me out tonight, Tiku… I had a good time." Novak smiled, putting his hands in his pockets.

"No; thank you, Novak, for letting me take you out. I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"Yeah… Well, I guess I'll see you soon."

"Yeah, see you soon, Novak." With that, Tiku left, heading back to his apartment. Novak sighed and headed inside his own apartment, heading straight to his bedroom.

It felt like as soon as he lay down on his bed, he was out like a light.


End file.
